Category: Blogs

Egypt’s Elite and an End to a Call for Democracy

By Amr Hamzawy

My mind is still bewildered as I try to explain why Egypt’s elite have ceased calling for democracy and adherence to its procedures.  I try to understand how they accept (sometimes silently) violations of human rights and freedoms and a renewal of the authoritarian, subjugating nature of the government’s relationship to society and citizens. Here, […]

Will President Obama Prioritize Nuclear Cooperation with Saudi Arabia?

By Sigurd Neubauer

Next week, President Barack Obama is set to pay King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia a high-profile visit as he seeks to restore fraught relations over Syria and Iran policy. Although the two leaders are expected to hold wide-ranging consultations over regional developments, it remains unclear whether the US president has set aside time on his […]

US Suggests Baltics War Games in Response to Russian ‘Land Grab’

By Roberta Rampton, Reuters

The United States is considering sending troops for war games in the Baltic states bordering Russia, Vice President Joe Biden said on Tuesday in an effort to reassure NATO allies alarmed at the Kremlin’s intervention in Ukraine.

Missing Flight 370 Has Israel on High Alert

Atlantic Council Ambassador-in-Residence Michael Oren appeared on Piers Morgan Live to talk about how the search for missing flight 370 has put Israel on high alert. One theory on the disappearance is that the plane was hijacked to be used in a 9/11-style attack. As Oren points out to guest host Bill Wier, Israel’s precarious […]

Closing Syria’s Embassy

By Frederic C. Hof

Special Envoy for Syria Daniel Rubinstein yesterday announced that the United States had notified the Syrian government “that it must immediately suspend operations of its Embassy in Washington, DC and its honorary consulates in Troy, Michigan and Houston, Texas.”

Where’s NATO’s Strong Response to Russia’s Invasion of Crimea?

By Kurt Volker, Foreign Policy

As Russia completes its invasion and eventual annexation of Crimea — and possibly threatens more Ukrainian territory — one can be forgiven for asking, “Where’s NATO?”

Top News: Interim President Pledges Help for Australian Al Jazeera Journalist

By EgyptSource

Egypt’s interim president has pledged to help resolve the controversial trial of jailed Australian journalist Peter Greste, in a letter that the reporter’s Al Jazeera channel called an “encouraging sign.” Adly Mansour, the interim president appointed after Mohamed Morsi’s ouster, said he would “spare no effort to work towards the speedy resolution of the case, in a […]

Putin Declares Crimea Annexed; So How Best Now to Fight for Ukraine?

By James Rupert

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s declared annexation of Crimea today changes the power struggle in Eastern Europe. The United States and its allies, which have been warning against that step, immediately must focus on the wider dangers of Putin’s likely next move. Putin aims to reclaim greater Russian influence – and if possible, control – over […]